Chained
by daffyduck x3
Summary: After five years, Chihiro returns, only to find Haku chained and trapped as a dragon by Yubaba.
1. Chapter 1

Chained

Disclaimer: Miyazaki owns all

(Chihiro's POV)

It's been 5 years now. 5 years since my visit to the spirit world. 5 years since his hand slipped from mine, 5 years since the promise was made.

(Flashback)

"Will I ever see you again?"

"I'm sure of it."

"Promise?"

"Promise. Now go, and whatever you do, don't look back!"

(End Flashback)

That day, he told me I would see him again, and I believed him. There wasn't a day that went by that I didn't think of him. Every year my birthday wish was the same – for him to come back, to feel his arms around me again. But 5 years have already gone by and there's still no sign of him. I can't help but wonder if something happened, if someone else has replaced me…but he wouldn't do that…right?

"Chihiro!"

I was jerked out of my thoughts as my mother's voice rang in my ear. I turned and saw the annoyed expression that flitted across her face.

"Yeah?"

She sighed.

"I've been calling your name for the last ten minutes Chihiro."

"Oh…sorry. I was just thinking."

An eyebrow rose.

"Really. And here I was, thinking you've gone deaf and I needed to take you to the doctor" my mother teased.

I blushed. "Sorry" I mumbled again. "Did you need me for something?"

"Well I just came to tell you that we're ready to leave for the Kohaku River Resort-"

Oh. Shit. How could I have forgotten? It was summer, and my parents had planned a visit to the Kohaku River Resort. Butterflies fluttered in my stomach. Maybe today was the day-

"Chihiro!"

I snapped out of it.

"Sorry! I guess I was thinking again." I muttered sheepishly.

My mother rolled her eyes. "Yes, anyway, get your bags, we're about to leave."

"Okay"

I turned, looking for my bag. I frowned. Where was it? Then I remembered-I hadn't packed any. I could feel Mother's stare on my back.

"Well?"

"Well, um, yesterday, I was really tired and I-" I stuttered, my brain scrambling for an excuse.

"Where are your bags?" I winced and took a deep breath, bracing myself for the explosion that was sure to come.

"Iwastootiredandiforgottopackany"

I looked at my mother and then quickly returned my gaze to the floor. She looked…pissed…to say the least. _Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one._

"Chihiro!" Yep, I knew it. I glanced at her face again. Judging from angry glare she was giving me, I knew I was in big trouble.

-------------------------scene change--------------------

An hour later, with me in need of a new pair of ears, we finally left for the resort. On the way, my mother was _still _lecturing me on "responsibility", but I blocked her out. My stomach churned nervously as we got closer to our destination. What was going to happen? Will Haku be there? Will I see him? A million thoughts ran through my head. By the time we arrived, I was a nervous wreck, although I tried to keep that hidden from my parents.

"We're here" Father announced. Wordlessly I got out of the car and took my bag from the trunk. I followed them to the Resort. I fidgeted and looked around as Father talked to the attendant at the front desk. The room was actually pretty cozy, with a couple of comfy looking armchairs and sofas scattered around. A sign was hung on the back wall _Welcome to Kohaku River Resort_. There were also several paintings and some carvings.

One painting of a dragon caught my eye. It wasn't spectacular or anything and it was hung on the back corner. I wandered over, and as I got closer I could make out the tiny details – the scales that winked and twinkled in the sun, the water swirling around the great beast. I gasped, gingerly touching it with my hand. It looked so much like Haku! But how could it be him?

"Ai. The great spirit of the Kohaku river. Great lad, he is, though he sure could use someone like you right now."

I whirled around, my eyes wide. A man stood before me, wearing long, black robes with a hat that tilted and covered half of his face. He wore a mischievous smile on his face. I opened my mouth to ask him what he meant, but before I could, my mother called out

"Chihiro! Come on, let's go to our room!"

"Okay!" I answered.

I turned back to the mysterious stranger, planning to ask exactly what he meant. But when I looked, he wasn't there. It was like magic-there wasn't any trace of him, no sign that he was even there in the first place. A shiver went up my spine. What was going on? Who, or _what_ was he? And was he implying that the dragon was Haku? Sure, it looked like him, well, more like it was identical to him, but that could be purely coincidental. And also, what did he mean when he said "he sure could use someone like you"?

That night, I couldn't sleep. Our parting words echoed in my dreams. I dreamed about that day, the last time I saw him. The dream started as it normally did. Except this time, something was different.

"Will I ever see you again?"

"I'm sure of it."

"Promise?"

"Promise. Now go!"

Then the dream changed. Haku shifted into his dragon form, and with a roar, rose into the air. He soared into the sky, flying free, until suddenly chains-hundreds, thousands of them shot through the sky, wrapping them around his body. A collar clamped around his neck. The dragon gave an enraged roar. He fought tooth and nail, trying to pull away, desperately trying to break free of the chains that had captured him. But it was a wasted effort. Slowly but surely, the chains pulled him slowly down to the ground. The sky changed from a carefree blue to midnight black with shadows. Thunder rumbled and lightning split the sky.

All the while, I just stood there, paralyzed. I wanted to scream for help, to go and save him, but my legs and my mouth wasn't working. It was like something was deliberately keeping her from trying to help.

When at last, the chains had managed to pull the dragon back to Earth, the mighty beast looked at her, and for a second their eyes met.

_Help me, help me Chihiro. _I read in his eyes.

"I will! I will, just wait, I'll get you out of their!" I wanted to shout, to tell him I was going to help. But all of a sudden, the ground beneath us cracked and split. The chains slowly pulled the dragon down, until the blue-and-white dragon was swallowed by the darkness, and I could see him no more.

Okay, that's the first chapter. Like it, hate it, wutever, just review, k? thanks


	2. Chapter 2

Chained

Disclaimer-Whisper of the Heart is such of a good movie! That's where I got the idea for this chapter. But Spirited Away is still better xP. Once again, I own nothing.

A/N. yesterday I forgot to say, this story is really au. In my story, the Kohaku River is still the Kohaku River. Now to the story.

By Dawn I could take it no more. I had been plagued by nightmares the entire night. So when I woke up for about the tenth time, I decided it was time to get up. Maybe a walk would clear my head. I got dressed and let my legs carry me as my mind wandered. My thoughts drifted to the nightmares that kept me up the whole night. A shiver went up my spine as I recalled the images still fresh in my head.

(flashback)

_When at last, the chains had managed to pull the dragon back to Earth, the mighty beast looked at me, and for a second our eyes met. _

_Help me, help me Chihiro. I read in his eyes._

"_I will! I will, just wait, I'll get you out of their!" I wanted to shout, to tell him I was going to help. But all of a sudden, the ground beneath us cracked and split. The chains slowly pulled the dragon down, until the blue-and-white dragon was swallowed by the darkness, and I could see him no more._

(End flashback)

I shuddered again. The dream felt so _real_, and well, there was just something weird about it that made me think it was more than just a regular nightmare.

No. I told myself firmly. It was only a dream, nothing special. But then, a niggling little voice in the back of my head whispered 'But what about the old man? And the painting that just happened to look exactly like Haku?' I shook my head. No, I told myself again. The stranger was just a creepy old man, and the painting was simply a coincidence. But in spite of that, there was still a part of me that doubted that was the truth.

Woah. Unknowingly, my feet had taken me to the west bank of the Kohaku River. Ironically, this was also the place where Haku left me after he rescued me from drowning. I guess my feet still remembered where to go.

Gingerly, I sat down, running the fine sand particles through my fingers. I stared at the horizon, where the rising sun made the sky look like a watercolor painting of red and orange hues. The light reflected off the river, making it twinkle and shine. 'Sort of like Haku's scales' I thought absently.

Meowr. The subtle purr of a cat came from somewhere to my right. When I looked, a cat was strutting toward me, its head held high and acting like it was the Queen of England. The cat stopped right next to me, where it settled down and promptly started to preen and wash. I smiled at the cats antics and took the time to examine her/him/it. The cat was a smoky, grayish color, with a patch of blue on her (well, at least I _think_ it's a her) right ear. Somehow or another, she seemed to remind me of someone, but try as I might I couldn't remember who.

My hand reached over and I stroked the cat. Her fur was soft and silky, and she gave a purr of content. "What's your name?" I asked her softly. "Where do you live, where do you come from?" I sighed. "I wonder where Haku is right now. Do you think he's thinking of me?" I felt a little stupid, talking to the cat, but once I started I couldn't stop. "I mean, he promised, he _promised._ It's already been five ears! How long could it take to talk to Yubaba?" I sighed again. "I really, really miss him." I murmured.

Just then, the cat got up quickly. She started trotting in the direction she came from. "Hey! Where are you going?" The cat paused and she looked back at me. Her expression clearly read, 'Come with me'. "What? Where are you going?" But the cat was already moving full speed ahead. "Okay! Wait!" I scrambled up and ran quickly to catch up. "I'm coming!"

Now curiosity replaced confusion. Maybe I could make this into an adventure, I thought as the cat led me down the river. She banked sharply and I followed her into a dense forest, which I didn't remember to be there a second before. Overhead, the leafy branches shaded and blocked the sunlight. Birds twittered and I could hear the buzz of insects. It was as if I had entered a whole different world. Crap. I stumbled and tripped over a tree root. When I managed to collect myself, I saw that cat was already far, far, ahead. "Wait up!" I shouted to the cat. Cursing under my breath, I sprinted and tried to watch out for anything else that I might trip over.

Breathing hard, I finally managed to catch up to where she had stopped. When I walked into the clearing, I knew immediately something wasn't right. The moment I stepped into the clearing, all sounds stopped. I could no longer hear the birds and the animals. My eyes scanned around, until it rested upon a statue right in the center of it. My breath caught in my throat. No. way. That statue looked exactly like the one before the cathedral, when I entered the spirit world. Now this time I was a little freaked out. Paintings and cats I could handle, and maybe even weird old men, but this was starting to creep me out.

I looked back at the cat with wide eyes, which was just sitting innocently. "Okay, what. Is. going. on.?" I demanded, choosing to disregard the fact that cats can't talk. The truth is, I was beginning to think this wasn't a normal cat, just like this wasn't a normal trip to a normal river resort. When this "adventure" first started, I thought it was going to be fun. Now I just wanted to go back in time and be the innocent little girl I was five years ago. However, luck really wasn't on my side.

I crossed my arms and glared at the cat standing beside the statue. She was looking at me, and I could tell she wanted me to come over. "Nuh uh" I informed her. "I am not going over to that freaky statue for my life."

Then, I found out that not only was luck not on my side, but apparently nature decided she wanted to ally with my horrible luck.

The wind blew into clearing, and playfully ruffled my hair. It gave me a light push in the direction of the statue. I planted my feet apart, determined not go to that stupid statue. And that was when I realized that the wind was just as stubborn as I was. It gave another push, this time harder. I resisted again, but the wind gave me an extra hard push that sent me right over to the statue. I stumbled, and reached over to the statue to steady myself.

But when I touched it, the most um, _interesting _thing happened. The world dissolved around me, quite literally in fact. I could see the trees and the grass fading. I tried to jerk my hand away from the statue, but it was as if someone had super-glued my hand to the stupid thing. That was when I started panicking. I looked around wildly, and saw that the cat was right next to me. "You idiot animal! What the heck is going on? I never should have followed you!" I had expected it to be indignant, but all it did was look at me with this mischievous/smug smile on its face. I glared at it. "This is all your fault."

I don't know how long we stood there, but finally, the world around us became all white, devoid of all colors. I closed my eyes, and when I opened them, I found us standing in a whole different place. 'what the…' I looked at my surroundings, and imagine my surprise when I saw us standing right in front of the stupid cathedral that started this whole mess. To say I was shocked would be an understatement. I glared at the cat and opened my mouth to tell it off, but at that moment, the wind chose to push me to the tunnel. "No no no! I am NOT going in there!" I realized I was sounding like a whiny four year old, but I could care less. "I'm NOT going in there, and you can't make me!" Of course, I was wrong. I guess the wind lost its patience with me and sent me flying _through _the tunnel. I guess that if I wasn't scared to death, it would have been fun, since it was like flying.

After I picked myself off the ground, I got up and intended to march right back through the tunnel. Except there was this little problem…the tunnel wasn't there. Seriously, the whole cathedral disappeared. Ok, this really wasn't my day. I turned around and swallowed. For a moment, memories overwhelmed me. My parents turning into pigs, being comforted by Haku… Haku. I made up my mind. I'm going to go back, if only to see what had happened to him. I took a step forward, and hesitated. Suppose something did happen to him, suppose he wasn't there anymore. Then what would I do?

I took a deep breath. 'Get a grip Chihiro. Everything's going to be fine, everything's going to be fine.' I repeated this mantra in my head as I took one step after another. Hopefully, I would come out in one piece.

_Ready or not, here I come.  
_

There! Another chapter all finished. Thanks to the ppl that reviewed-you guys made my day, and to my beta, Christine, who doesn't really do much but that's okay. anyway, REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW! PLZ!


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